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After hundreds of years of neglect, science is finally giving some attention to hypnosis and concluding that it does in fact, work, if not quite the way people have claimed in the past.[1] It won’t give you control over the person you’ve hypnotized, but it will put him in a calmer, more focused state of mind in which extraneous memories and thoughts are often blocked out.[2] It can be an effective way to reduce stress and pain.[3] Inducing hypnosis quickly is often best, because it permits less time for distractions.

Steps

Part 1

Preparing the Subject for Hypnosis

1

Practice speaking in a soothing tone. It’s imperative that you talk to your subject in a way that calms and relaxes him. Practice speaking slowly, with some rhythm and melody and no harsh or discordant tones. Use this as an opportunity to practice your script; if you struggle with what you want to say during induction it will break the subject’s focus.[4]

You also should not sound like you’re reading off a script. Practice will help you sound natural.

2

Prepare your subject mentally and physically. You will want to make sure that he is relaxed. Inform him that you might touch him lightly, so that he is not surprised in a way that would cause him to break focus. If your subject is wearing a skirt, give her a blanket to put over her legs so that she does not need to worry about the way she positions herself.

Similarly, tell your subject that is okay if he coughs or moves. If he is struggling to suppress a biological function, it will likely break his focus.[5]

Similarly, tell him to keep his legs uncrossed, otherwise he might get caught up by repositioning his legs. If he is wearing glasses, have him remove them.

3

Tell your subject that he has nothing to worry about. A distinct sense of fear will prevent him from falling into hypnosis. You want to let him know what you will not be able to manipulate them and that he will not be endangered by the hypnosis.

Simply indicate "This is a perfectly safe procedure. You will enter into a state of increased relaxation and focus, but you will be in control the entire time."

4

Ask for permission. Always begin by asking if he is ready to be hypnotized. Establishing consent is important for ensuring that he is mentally ready and should calm him as well.[6]

A simple, "Do you agree to be hypnotized?" should be sufficient

5

Beware that not all people respond the same way. Hypnotic subjects need to be willing to engage in the procedure and psychologically susceptible. Studies have shown that approximately 80% of subjects are moderately susceptible, 10% are highly susceptible, and another 10% have low susceptibility.[7]

Susceptibility is positively correlated to how well the subject is prone to fantasy and empathy.[8] His ability to focus while, for example, reading, also correlates to susceptibility. [9]

It is often thought that hypnosis is easier in a relaxing environment with few external sounds or distractions. While this sort of hypnosis certainly won't hurt, some studies indicate that hypnosis is equally as easy to reach in disturbing settings

Part 2

Executing the Eight Word Induction

1

Tell the subject to “press my hand.” Stretch one of your hands out in front of the subject and ask him to press his hand against yours. Ideally, he should press down with some force, but only be touching the edge of your hand, so that it will be easy for you to withdraw your hand when you are ready.[10]

2

Tell the subject to “close your eyes.” As you do this, take your other hand and wave it across his face. Do this very rapidly shortly after having him press against your hand. That way, his attention will be occupied with two tasks simultaneously. [11]

3

Tell the subject to “sleep.” As you do this, pull your hand away from his so that he falls forward, as if falling asleep like you told him to. The goal is to surprise him.[12] You should speak in a strong, authoritative tone when telling him to “sleep.”[13]

This whole process should take about four seconds. Surprise—and thus speed—is imperative.

Part 3

Finishing the Hypnosis

1

Be prepared to urge the subject into a deeper hypnosis. The initial shock of the eight word induction will fade if not followed up with a script that takes him into a deeper state of hypnosis. For this, follow up in a calm tone with a couple of sentences asking the subject to fall into a deeper sleep. [14]

The two best ways to deepen the hypnosis are described below: rocking the head and performing a countdown. Pick whichever you are most comfortable with; rocking the head will require some physical contact with the subject.

2

Rock the subject's head. If the subject is positioned so that he falls over into a slump after you pull away his hand, some hypnotists will begin to rock the subjects head with their hands to induce a more relaxed state. As you do that, you can tell him to let his neck relax and let that feeling of relaxation spread throughout his body. Tell him to let his mind and body relax until he fall into a deep sleep.

Tell him, for example: "As I rock your head you will go deeper and deeper into a trance. The more I rock your head the deeper you go, the deeper you go the better you feel, the better you feel the deeper you go ... " [15]

3

Try a countdown. Tell him that he will become more relaxed as you count down from 1 to 5. Every time you count down a number, describe to him how he is felling. “1, the relaxation is spreading through your body. 2, the relaxation is getting deeper. 3, your mind is becoming relaxed. 4, you no longer feel anything but the sense of relaxation. 5, your relaxation is getting deeper with every passing second.” [16]

Alternatively try something like: “10, you feel yourself relaxing. 9, going deeper and deeper. 8, doing excellently, keep going. 7, with each number I say you will be in a deeper trance. 6, deeper, excellent. 5, farther and farther, relax completely now. 4, 3, you're doing well. 2, even farther away from the world. 1, 0. You are now in a deep trance.”

4

Begin priming your subject to wake. Shortly before you try to awake him, tell him that it is almost time to “wake up” and “become more aware.” To make the transition peaceful, indicate how he will feel when he comes out of hypnosis. Tell him that when he comes out of the trance he will feel “relaxed and comfortable.”

As you do this, use cues that will make him feel like he is returning to the real world. Stop speaking in such a slow, soothing tone and begin talking in a more normal conversational tone, like you would in everyday life. Call the subject by his name to remind him of his regular life.[17]

5

Wake the subject. Tell him that he will awaken after you count down from 10. As you count down, talk in a progressively less calming tone. Say something like “10, you are feeling more awake. 9, you are beginning to become conscious. 8, you are remembering your life. 7, 6, you feel like you are waking from a deep sleep.”

You could get an abreaction: the subject can live (inside his mind) a very vivid scene of a past traumatic event. Abreactions can be really traumatic for the subjects. Pay attention to their face and watch for signs of distress.

Article Info

wikiHow is a “wiki,” similar to Wikipedia, which means that many of our articles are co-written by multiple authors. To create this article, 27 people, some anonymous, worked to edit and improve it over time. Together, they cited 17 references. This article has also been viewed 233,519 times.